How To Transfer Frequent Flier Miles or Loyalty Points?

Answer 1

Frequent flier miles can be great, but sometimes they are accumulated in the account of a friend or family member that is unable to utilize them. In that case, it would be nice if you could easily transfer your points to someone who needs them. Unfortunately, most travel providers have realized this need and have added hefty fees for transferring their miles or points from one account to another. Typically, these fees are worth as much or more as the points or miles themselves, making the transfer uneconomical.

Thankfully, there are a few tricks that will allow you to transfer the awards without paying a fee. Some companies actually allow free transfers of miles and points between family members residing at the same address. Such companies include British Airways, Hawaiian Airlines, and Starwood Hotels. It may even be wise to temporarily change your mailing address for this purpose, as the airline really won’t know that you haven’t moved in with your relatives temporarily.

If your travel provider won’t transfer points for free, keep in mind that nearly all airlines and hotels will allow you to redeem an award in another’s name. In this way, you don’t transfer the miles themselves, just the award, which is the part that counts. If you were anticipating pooling your miles for a large award, remember that many airlines will now allow you to redeem miles for one way awards, so that you can redeem awards for two one way tickets from two different accounts.

The biggest concern with redeeming an award in another’s name is the airline’s rules that forbid the sale or barter of awards. If the recipient is not traveling with you, and they have a different last name, an airline may suspect that you have violated this rule. To be safe, provide the recipient of the award with a letter indicating that you are giving this award as a gift. Be sure to include your name, address, telephone number, mileage account information, and signature. Taking this extra step will ensure that an overly aggressive airline agent has no cause to suspect fraud.

Finally, in the unfortunate event that a family member passes away, most companies will transfer the miles to living relative for free. They will typically require a death certificate and some other proof of your relationship. While it might not be the first thing on your mind in such an event, miles and points are valuable assets that can be passed on to one’s survivors.

You and your friends and family spend a lot of time, money, and effort to accumulate points and miles. It is up to you to make sure that these miles and points are put to their best use.